Parent Scientific Talk

Does reading a storybook using generic vs specific language impact parent scientific talk and children’s subsequent persistence on a science task? 

Research has shown that generic language (e.g. “Scientists are good at this”), as opposed to specific language (e.g. “This scientist is good at this”) highlights properties of a group as essential and unchanging, leading children to believe that performance is the result of stable traits rather than effort. Exposure to generic language about ability has been shown to be an obstacle to children’s motivation (Cimpian, 2010). 

In this study, we seek to explore how a shared storybook reading in which parents and 4- and 5-year-old children either read a storybook about a scientist that uses generic language or a storybook that uses specific language impacts parent talk, performance on a dyadic science task, and children’s individual performance on a science task. We predict that parents who read the generic language storybook will use more identity-based language during the reading and dyadic science task compared to parents who read the specific language storybook. We also predict that the use of identity-based language will negatively impact children’s persistence on a science task.